Morgan Stanley Cuts Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) Price Target to $13.00

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) had its price objective dropped by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $15.00 to $13.00 in a research note issued on Friday,MarketScreener reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price points to a potential upside of 0.36% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on CAG. Zacks Research lowered shares of Conagra Brands from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Conagra Brands from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on Conagra Brands from $18.00 to $14.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 30th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on Conagra Brands in a research note on Monday, April 13th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Conagra Brands from $16.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Conagra Brands has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $14.67.

Conagra Brands Price Performance

Shares of CAG opened at $12.95 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market cap of $6.20 billion, a PE ratio of -129.68 and a beta of -0.02. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $14.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.51. Conagra Brands has a twelve month low of $12.53 and a twelve month high of $22.58.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.76 billion. Conagra Brands had a positive return on equity of 10.15% and a negative net margin of 0.39%.The business’s revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.51 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Conagra Brands will post 1.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director John J. Mulligan bought 17,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $14.31 per share, with a total value of $250,425.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,728 shares in the company, valued at approximately $296,617.68. The trade was a 542.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard H. Lenny purchased 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $14.34 per share, with a total value of $358,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 229,340 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,288,735.60. This trade represents a 12.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Conagra Brands

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAG. Bell Investment Advisors Inc increased its position in Conagra Brands by 156.9% in the 1st quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 1,685 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 1,029 shares during the period. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC bought a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 80.4% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,573 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 701 shares during the last quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc acquired a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands in the second quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Conagra Brands during the third quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 83.75% of the company’s stock.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc is a leading packaged foods company based in Chicago, Illinois, with a broad portfolio of shelf-stable, frozen and refrigerated foods marketed under familiar brands. The company develops, produces and distributes a wide range of consumer food products, serving both retail grocery and foodservice channels. Conagra’s product lineup includes frozen entrees, snacks, condiments, baking goods and desserts, providing convenient meal solutions for consumers across North America and select international markets.

Among its well-known brands are Birds Eye, Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, Marie Callender’s and Banquet in the frozen foods category, as well as Hunt’s sauces, Orville Redenbacher’s popcorn, Slim Jim meat snacks and Reddi-wip toppings.